LYLA THYGERSON

In “Mr. Nobody Against Putin,” teacher and filmmaker Pavel Talenkin captures the true intensity of Russia’s government propaganda from the inside his own rural primary school.

In his 1955 book “Notes of a Native Son,” James Baldwin said, “I love America more than any other country in the world and, exactly for this reason, I insist on the right to criticize her perpetually.” Baldwin’s sentiments are echoed years later and from across the world in the new documentary “Mr. Nobody Against Putin.” 

The film is an in-depth look into the eerie reality of the indoctrination of Russian children under President Vladimir Putin’s education system. More than that, however, it is about love for one’s country and the people in it, and what that means when a country becomes unrecognizable. 

Documentary filmmaker Daven Borenstein and schoolteacher-turned-filmmaker Pavel Talenkin partnered up to create “Mr. Nobody Against Putin,” which premiered at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival and won the World Cinema Documentary Special Jury Award. It was released in select North American theaters Jan. 22 and is a 2026 Academy Award nominee for best documentary feature. 

Structurally, the film is fairly simple. Only about 90 minutes long, it chronologically follows Talenkin’s heroic journey from beloved schoolteacher to exiled filmmaker. The movie’s power lies in the intimacy and haunting relatability of the footage; it’s proof that smiling school children pull at heartstrings universally. 

“I love my job, but I don’t want to be a pawn of the regime.”  Pavel Talenkin, filmmaker

Talenkin was the event coordinator and videographer at a primary school in Karabash, located in the heavily industrialized Ural region of Russia. When the Russian military invaded Ukraine in February 2022, everything at the school changed. Under the new government’s “patriotic” curriculum, Talenkin’s job was to film lessons and upload them to a government database to prove the school’s compliance. His footage quickly changed from school celebrations to teachers stumbling over words in scripted lessons designed to teach students to support the war.

For Talenkin, the work was soul-crushing, leading him to resign. 

“I love my job, but I don’t want to be a pawn of the regime,” he said. 

Before he could officially leave the position, however, a chance to do something about the troubling experience presented itself. 

In his frustration, he had responded to an Instagram post asking for stories about how life in Russia had changed after the invasion. Borenstein saw Talenkin’s response and reached out, offering support and the opportunity to put his footage to use. Talenkin rescinded his resignation, and the creation of “Mr. Nobody Against Putin” began. Under the guise of government documentation, he secretly started to gather footage for the film.

The documentary opens on a haunting note. “Just be calm,” says a woman’s voice instructing Talenkin on how to execute his escape. Talenkin walks across the dark woods holding a shovel and begins to dig. The screen cuts to black, then flashes back to two years prior before anything had changed. 

Not all of Talenkin’s footage is so grim. With endearing captions styled to look like handwritten notes, he introduces viewers to the characters of his world, like his mother (the school librarian), his gentle-mannered student named Masha (whose brother goes off to war) and Mr. Abdulmanov (a beloved teacher who preaches passionately in favor of Putin’s regime). 

Against the backdrop of bleak, snowy mountains, Talenkin and Borenstein portray the confusion of life under Putin’s wartime government. Students stare blankly as they learn how to march. Seemingly happy birthday celebrations are underscored by the impending concern of being drafted into the war. Clips of Russian television propaganda are interspersed to provide political context — a rock musician plays his guitar and sings passionately, “Our nuclear missions are ready for battle.” Each clip feels more dystopian than the one before.

The intensity of the propaganda and the fear in the students’ eyes noticeably increase, but the compelling feature of “Mr. Nobody Against Putin,” is what remains the same: Talenkin’s insistence on his love for Russia. Even as he films the country illegally and admits he could face life in prison for doing so, he relentlessly declares his love for his nation and the people in it. 

“I might love Russia much more than the regime supporters do,” he said. 

The documentary ends with Talenkin back in the woods with his shovel, about to leave Russia for good. This time, we learn what he’s digging: a tree for the children to plant at the year’s graduation ceremony — a final act of love for the people of his home.

Altogether, “Mr. Nobody Against Putin” is an incredible case study of what it truly means to be patriotic. 

“Love for your country is not about raising a flag or singing an anthem; it’s about being willing to say (that) ‘we have a problem,’” Talenkin said.